HPV vaccination policies and implementation for adolescents in low- and middle-income countries: a scoping review.
Level V
Where this comes from
- Record sourced from PubMed, PMID 42438569.
- Also identified by DOI 10.1016/j.lanwpc.2026.101919 and PMC identifier 13356746.
- Licence recorded as CC BY.
- The licence permits redistribution, so the abstract is shown in full and the full text is available from the publisher.
Abstract
This scoping review mapped adolescent HPV vaccination policies across 84 low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) with national HPV immunization programs and synthesized implementation evidence through July 2025. Focusing on adolescents aged 9-14 years, we identified policy convergence in target age, school-based delivery, and free vaccination provision, alongside divergence in gender eligibility, vaccine type, and funding mechanisms across income levels. Nearly half of LMICs have adopted single-dose schedules, reflecting a clear trend toward dosing simplification. Despite these policy advances, only 9.8% of countries achieved the WHO 90% complete vaccination target among females by age 15. Coverage analysis suggested that school-based programs maintained more stable performance over time than health facility-based approaches. Implementation evidence identified four facilitating factors, while barriers varied by income level. School-based programs complemented by mixed delivery approaches and single-dose schedules may offer a promising pathway toward the 2030 cervical cancer elimination goals.